H. Sterling Burnett, Ph.D. is managing editor of Environment & Climate News and a research fellow for environment and energy policy at The Heartland Institute. Burnett worked at the National Center for Policy Analysis for 18 years, most recently as a senior fellow in charge of NCPA’s environmental policy program. He has held various positions in professional and public policy organizations, including serving as a member of the Environment and Natural Resources Task Force in the Texas Comptroller’s e-Texas commission.

war on carbon dioxide, now its the airlines industry in Obama’s crosshairs.

On July 25 the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ruled greenhouse gases from airplanes endanger public health. As a result of this endangerment finding, EPA is required to regulate greenhouse gas emissions from aircraft under the federal Clean Air Act, removing a hurdle to implementing internationally agreed rules on airliner pollution.

EPA claims aircraft are the third-biggest source of greenhouse gas emissions from domestic transportation. The endangerment finding triggers the EPA rule-making process either to adopt the emissions standard developed by the U.N. International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) or develop its own standard “at least as stringent.” Under the ICAO standard, aircraft manufacturers would need to take action by 2020 to improve the design or halt production of 40 percent of current aircraft designs, said Anthony Philbin, a spokesman for ICAO.

The latest planes from companies such as Boeing and Airbus meet the new emissions standards. U.S. officials have pushed for a quicker phase-out of less-efficient planes, meaning EPA may choose to establish more stringent standards or a shorter timeline for change.

That’s the bad news for the moment. Now its time to crack a smile and maybe even break out into a gut-busting laugh. Calling attention to the hypocrisy in Secretary of State John Kerry’s recent claim refrigerators and air conditioners are as big a threat to humanity as ISIS, a petition has been launched on Change.org calling on the State Department to remove all air conditioners from its facilities. In support of the petition, Change.org notes, “it is the duty of our elected and appointed government officials to lead by example.” Now here’s a climate initiative I can get behind.